Our 5 Favorite Kitchen Items For RV Cooking

Having taken our walk on the beach I figured we’d get back and do another little post on food. There are so many posts I could do, so many topics…from my love of fermented foods (which I alluded to in this post) to yummy fresh, raw products and recipe ideas. But what I thought would be appropriate today would be to introduce some of our favorite kitchen items.

Now there are many things you pare down or skimp in an RV, but if you’re a cook I recommend bringing as many cooking items as you can. We did and I don’t think we regretted a one of them. Apart from switching out a few pans over the years we’ve used everything from our massive Cuisinart blender (which takes up a whole cupboard) to our little microplane grater. I can live with 2 pairs of shoes, but my stomach is so much more materialistic. We also bought a coach with both a propane stove-top & propane oven (both used extensively when we boondock) as well as a combo convection/microwave (rarely used). This means there is literally nothing we can’t make.

But if we were to pick just 5 big cooking items we couldn’t live without, these would be the ones:

1/ Italian Stove-top Espresso Maker

We live for our morning espresso. We like it strong, steamy and Italian-style, but we also want it convenient & stove-top so we can easily make it while boondocking. Lucky for us, the southern Europeans have been making espresso like this for decades. I started using a stove-top espresso maker over 15 years ago and we still use the same one today. If you’ve never tried stove-top espresso it is excellent and it’s worth going the extra mile and getting a stainless steel version like the Cuisinox Roma 6-cup Stainless Steel Stovetop Espresso Maker (the exact one we have). For less than $90 you’ll have a piece of equipment that will last you for many years. A tried and true kitchen utensil we would never be without.

2/ Chinese Wok

We’ve had this traditional wok for years

I can’t live without my wok. I use it for stir-frying, soups, curries, steaming…you name it. We’ve had the same wok ever since we met each other and we bought it for less than $20 in San Francisco China town. It’s an old-style steel wok (not the newer “non-stick” versions, which I would never ever buy) which requires seasoning and maintenance, but it’s also got a totally slick surface and superb taste from all those years of cooking which can simply not be replicated. The Chinese call it “chi”, quite literally the “life-force” of the wok, and cooks fawn over their own decades-old woks with pride. If you’re passing through a big town just drop into the China-town area and pick one up. Amazon also has some decent-looking versions like this 16 inch Carbon Steel Hand Hammered Wok. Make sure to get a lid and a traditional Wok spatula too.

3/ Food Processor / Hand Blender

At some point in your cooking life you will need a good food processor. We looked all over for a rock-solid version and when we found the Cuisinart DLC-2009CHB Prep 9, we knew we had landed our baby. This is not an inexpensive piece of equipment and it takes up some space, but it is a power house. We’ve used this thing for raw veggie soups, almond flour, home-made no-bake Larabars, olive oil mayonnaise, salsa…just about anything that needs chopping or blending. There’s literally nothing this machine can’t handle and the quality is top-notch.

A close second and much more compact is our hand-blender. We started using a hand-blender many years ago when making smoothies and it continues to be one of the most oft-used kitchen tools. It’s compact, easy to clean and can be used for shakes, soups, hot chocolate, frothing milk, whipping cream you-name-it. We’ve been using the same Cuisinart for over 5 years. My version has disappeared on Amazon, but this Cuisinart CSB-75BC Smart Stick seems to come the closest.

4/ Cast Iron Pan

Our antique Wagner cast iron skillet. The real deal and we paid less than $20 for it!

I’m not a big fan of non-stick pans, especially since most of them use plastics (like Teflon) that rub off and become health hazards. There are PTFE & PFOA-free pans out there, but they never seem to last. A good cast iron skillet is heavy, but it’s indestructible and with the right seasoning it’s slick enough to fry eggs. There are modern cast-iron pans like this 8-inch Lodge Skillet which you can buy on-line, but nothing (and I mean nothing) compares to the antique cast iron skillets that were made at the turn of the century. If you’re going to go cast iron I recommend searching around to get the original stuff. We picked up a Wagner (the absolute best brand IMHO…Griswold are also nice) 8-inch skillet from ~1900 from e-bay for under $20. This is the real deal, the original shebang, and it is just beautiful. Before you buy make sure you understand the markings, the sizes and how to clean & season a skillet. For example don’t be fooled by any “1891 Original Wagner Ware” which is really a modern reproduction. Whether you find it in an antique shop or on e-bay, buy the old stuff and it will last you forever.

5/ Pressure Cooker

There’s nothing quite as nice as a fully-cooked meal with almost no time and effort and in our opinion nothing does that better than a good old-fashioned stove-top pressure cooker. We got ours 3 years ago and have used it almost constantly ever since to make stews, chili, bone broth/stock etc…within 30-40 mins you can have it all. It takes up quite a bit of space (we have it by the shoe rack in the closet), but it is an awesome piece of equipment. Now buying these things can be an exercise in patience since there seems to be around 100 different version at 100 different prices. We wanted a basic, solid model which was stainless steel (quite important), but without any of the fluffy extras and the Presto 01370 8-Quart Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker fit the bill perfectly. For the price I think it’s the best quality deal out there. Well worth the closet space.

These are our top 5, at least as far as big items go (there’s about 1000 more little gadgets & knick-knacks I could think about). What about you folks? What are your favorite kitchen items? Share and enjoy below.

POST BLOG EDIT: For those of you who asked for the recipe for those yummy fritters here it is: http://thesproutingseed.com/june-vegucation-zucchini-fritters/. They were very, very good.

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We LOooVE Comments, So Please Do

Hi Nina!
Great post topic. It is so funny how each cook has their favorite tools. I think after living in an RV for 2 years I must have felt really attached to the few special kitchen tools I had, and actually packed my stick blender and my crepe pan (along with my Henkel knives) in my suitcase to Abu Dhabi! Bon Appetit! I thought I would mention, there is a great collapsible salad spinner (I think available at Camping World) that is perfect for RV’s. The exterior bowl can be used for salad, chips, pasta, potato salad, ice, etc. We got a lot of mileage out of ours and it smashes down to take very little space.

I found your post quite interesting. I cook almost every night (we rarely eat out). I love making new recipes, but I don’t have any of your favorite items!! Too funny! I gave my blender, cast iron skillets (which I now regret) and wok (my daughter has) away before moved in to the MH. Probably my most valuable cooking item is the grill. I cook almost every night on it. I have learned to cook everything from the usual to many foil dishes, breads, and even apple pie. I try to cook the whole meal. I do love my little cast iron pot (a very valuable tool) that I use on the grill for sauce pan type items. I really dislike when it rains and I have to be creative inside.

Thanks for sharing your favorites!! Can’t wait to see what others say!

I have to admit our grill is another piece of equipment we really do enjoy, but we are woefully poor at using it (apart from just grilling meat). Our guests last night (from the TinTeePee) told me she uses the grill for most of her cooking too. There’s clearly a whole art to grill cooking which we have yet to learn. Fascinating stuff!
Nina

Can I have the recipe for the fritters ? For e it was my knives ( Japanese)’ my Griswold frying pan ( my MIL…well used) , my blender stick ( i am having a senior moment as I can not remember any of my brands) and a few other pots and pans. As well as my cuisinart chopper….but to be honest none of my items have anything to do with living fulltime in a RV….just cooking!!!

Really enjoying your blog. I make jam from wild berries and I have to have a couple of good stock pots for cooking the jams and one for the canning process. Hope you are enjoying the hunkelberries in Bandon. Bette Smith

We too have a tea kettle!! Not many people do over here. It’s something I started using when I lived in England (where it would be unthinkable to be without) and I’ve had one ever since. We make a fresh herbal tea every evening after dinner. Couldn’t live without it!
Nina

When we moved from the 5th wheel to the motorhome, I lost the propane oven. The convection oven doesn’t do nearly as good a job as a propane oven. I deeply mourn its loss. My favorite cooking tool is a 5 quart pot in which I can brown, then simmer one pot meals. I also love my slow cooker.

I agree about the propane oven versus the convection oven. There are certain things (like pizza, for example) which require strong heat that the convection just can’t handle. We LOVE our propane oven even tho’ many RVers don’t. We use our pressure cooker to brown and cook 1-pot meals (very similar to a stock pot).
Nina

Great post. I think my list would be very similar. I couldn’t live without my cast iron skillet. It’s the perfect cook-everything pan. I also love my mini-food processor and immersion blender. I really like the idea of the pressure cooker but so far have resisted one since I thought they were all electric. Since we boondock and dry camp so often that would be really impractical for us. It appears that the one you linked to goes on the regular stove top. If that is the case than I really need one!

Our favorite has to be our vita-mix, we use it every day whether at home or in our motorhome,the next item would be the solid stainless steel electric skillet…we had a hard time finding one without nasty teflon.

We live and camp at high altitudes, and a pressure cooker is quite a timesaver. Since water boils at a much lower temp up here, it can take 40 minutes to make mashed potatoes, so you get the idea. We bought one with a small pot and a large pot, and a steamer basket. The small pot comes up to pressure in just a few minutes and will cook large chunks of potato in the steamer basket in about 7 minutes. Also, I wouldn’t give up my cast iron skillets without a fight!

If I remember right, Paul has a big grill/smoker. That’s got to be a requirement. I wondered about the pressure cooker until I read the comments. Now I think I’ve got to get one.
I’d be up for a good fritter recipe too. We’ve got zucchini coming out our ears.

Great post! I’ve been on in “new kitchen gadget acquisition mode” this month and just ordered my very first pressure cooker yesterday– can’t wait to try it out! Last week’s new gadget was an Omega low-speed juicer– fabulous new friend that can also extrude sorbet or homemade pasta noodles! Now if I could just find a nimble-sized RV with a big-ass kitchen, I’ll be all set!

Just added the link to the recipe in the blog post. Thanks for all the cooking links. I really do enjoy cooking blogs.
Nina
P.S. Back in the day I was a food photographer (had my own business, believe it or not). I haven’t bothered with the “proper” set-up for my food shots, but maybe I’ll try and do some better ones for the blog. Food can look so very tasty when it’s shot right.

I think anything you like to cook with at home makes sense to bring along in the RV. In my mind RV cooking is not really any different from home cooking, except for the reduction in space. We do everything in the rig that we did at home.
Nina

Lots of RVers love their slow-cooker. I’ve heard many people use it on the road (e.g. driving from one destination to the next) or leave it cooking all-day while on a trip. I understand you can buy versions that don’t need electricity too (I think they’re called “thermal cookers”). We tend to use our pressure cooker for any 1-pot meal that requires longer cooking times, but I like the idea of a thermal cooker too.
Nina

I could not live without several good ceramic knives and my mandolin slicer. I had a fancy stainless steel mandolin when I lived in our home, but bought a cheap plastic version for the MH and it works great for all of the veggies I purchase at the Farmer’s Markets we visit. I wish I had room for all of your great kitchen equipment recommendations but we live full-time in a 21′ MH and have serious space restrictions, so the only electrically powered equipment I have is an immersion blender with chopping attachment. Also, I 2nd the grill recommendation…we use it to cook most of our meals in the summertime. Safe travels.

Indeed. A good blender/chopper can accomplish many things & is a great piece of equipment for those with more limited space. We must learn to do more grill-cooking. It’s a perfect match for RVing.
Nina

We want recipes! I don’t really like to cook, neither does hubby but we have to eat. In fact, I love to eat. Intrigued by the mother stuff…most folks don’t go there with food. Might have to get one of those immersion/stick blenders as I have been eyeing them for soups for a long time.
Donna

Awesome thread! I too have the pressure cooker…the Cuisinart….the cast iron…but I would like to add my Food Saver. It has saved me many times from tossing extras that wouldn’t get eaten right away….I also love my slow cooker. When we have a long travel day, which btw we try not to do I put dinner in the slow cooker and it cooks while we are driving. My favorite in the slow cooker is Butter Chicken.

Interesting idea on the Food Saver. Our RV fridge is so small that I don’t really “keep” that much food so not sure I’d get enough use out of it. Lots of RVers love their slow-cookers. We’ve not yet bought one, but it’s something we think about.
Nina

We start full timimg around the end of Jan. when the Winnebago Via 25P is delivered. I’ve tried to find a smaller blender to make our raw vegetable smoothie we have every morning, but everything is as big so I’ve decided to just keep my old osterizer. I’d love to hear about your olive oil mayo. How much do your pans, etc. rattle while driving? Wondering how much we will need to cushion kitchen things.

Just love your ideas – totally agree with other – definitely wouldn’t be without my cast iron pan – lodge Logic, “made in the U.S.A, which I purchased in Wal-Mart, actually I’ve bought more and given them to family and friends. Just so versatile. Another item I wouldn’t be without is my ninja chopper! multi purpose…. Thanks for all the great tips and ideas
Gerry

My next purchase will be a Bemco 8″ Backpacker Oven for use on both my indoor and outdoor propane stoves. Although it is on the small side, from what I’ve read, I’ll be able to bake nearly everything you can make at home (artisan bread, biscuits, pizza, lasagna, brownies, etc).

Great post! My husband and I are in the paring down stage in preparation for full time rv-ing. I’m a foodie, and the one thing that is causing me heart palpitations about this process is my kitchen. I can’t imagine my life without my kitchen aid. Did you bring yours?

Yup, we bought the kitchen aid too. It takes up almost an entire cupboard, but it’s worth it. I say if it’s an item you use regularly at home, bring it with you in the RV. Cooking is the same, just in a smaller space.

I collect vintage cast iron and like to cook over the open fire when I can. I was wondering if, in your travels, you have found fun outdoor and/or cast iron cooking festivals?? BTW, made your
roasted cauliflower in cast iron last night. Delicious. Will be a staple in our travel trailer.

Our antique cast iron pan is still our favorite pan! How cool that you collect them!

We haven’t gone looking for any specific cast iron cooking events in our travels, but I know you can often find cast iron cooking at Dude Ranches and festivals (e.g. Cook offs). It’d be an interesting thing to look for.

Love reading all your great info. My husband will be starting full-time Rving next week and found great rig to start our travels. It has everything we had hoped for except one thing – a propane oven!! It has the microwave/convection oven which Im sure works great if you are plugged in but not great for boondocking. I am searching how to overcome the loss of a propane oven. I know there are a few stove top ovens but is there anything else you would recommend?? Help!! I love to bake!!
Diane

Is there an option to install a propane oven after market? I have to admit that’s probably what we’d do since we really love (love, love) our propane oven.

Otherwise I know many folks who adapt to the convection/microwave and even end up preferring it. It’s easy enough to use for roasts, baking etc, but just not for broiling. Another option is a countertop toaster oven/broiler which can be surprisingly versatile once you get used to it. There are also outdoor propane-based camp ovens which I know some RVers use, although I’ve never personally tried one. And of course lastly there is the good old outdoor grill which can also be very versatile.

I can’t live without my Le Creuset enameled cast iron round 2qt. Oh, love my stovetop espresso but also my French press. Knives -good knives are so important.
My life isn’t fancy at all but I always eat off really nice China. Makes each meal just a little more special IMHO

I know this is an old post but I’ll add my two cents as well.
My top five favorite things I bring are my Keurig mini (for hot chocolate, coffee, espresso and tea),
bread machine (though it’s CLUNKY and takes up space… I could not express the value I have for making dough and loafs of bread!),
baking stone (I make dough in the bread machine and heat the stone over a fire to make pizzas and breads!),
blender (which substitutes as a food processor as well),
and my Le Creuset enamel coated cast iron skillet, which can be used in the grill, over a campfire or on my induction stove!

Honorable mentions include my Shun knife set, my infrared thermometer, and my Breville smart oven. I know everything I listed cost me an arm and a leg, but they have lasted me 2 years prior to hitting the road and now an additional 1.5 on the road without fail. I highly recommend investing in a good toaster oven that is ample in interior size (even if you have an oven, which I do not.) because it allows me to plug it in outdoors in the summertime and bake things like cookies and lasagna without heating up my rig!
😀 Happy Travels

We full-time in a 22 ft. airstream (think small but super cute)
Here are my must haves:
Electric tea kettle
A good cutting board (I prefer bamboo as we don’t eat meat and not as worried about bacteria)
French Press coffee maker
Cast Iron Small Skillets (individual portion sizes work better for us)
Le Creuset Stock Pot (small round)
Magma stainless steel nesting pots/pans (literally the best purchase I made for our RV hands down)

Yes on the pressure cooker.
We like the Aero,Press for coffee. You can make it as weak or strong as you like. And the clean up is simple.
For grilling. The Eco Que uses either briquettes or wood. And folds down the size of a fat computer
Of course we are in a smaller expedition type vehicle so space is important.
Heading to Alabama Hills in two weeks.

When we bought our first camper, my husband was very worried about “taking everything but the kitchen sink” and having the camper weigh too much. As we took everything out to the camper, I weighed it. Mind you, we had camped with Boy Scouts for 14 year so we were used to packing light.
Our mechanical appliances are a Cuisinart Griddle/Grill with the waffle grids, coffee pot, toaster, small electric skillet and hand mixer and a magic bullet. We did add pressure cooker, slow cooker and soup pot as needed per camping trip. We have since taken them out and use the Instant Pot. What a space saver! And then there are all of the wonderful meals you can cook in minutes or all day! We love it.

Hmmm… As we ponder our part-time full-time life, I’d really have to give this some thought! I swear by Calphalon saucepans and skillets (lifetime guarantee — bought a set that had a bad finish (nonstick, but not Teflon), sent them back, the company replaced them all at no charge). Splitting between an RV and a stix-and-brix, I’d probably leave them at home and take the Revere pans that hubby brought along for his “dowry” 32 years ago. We’re looking at used Country Coaches, which for some reason don’t include ovens, so a toaster/oven/broiler would be a must – our workhorse 12-year-old Rival gets used every day and, sad to say, it’s on its last legs. I’d have to think long and hard about our solar oven – it takes up a lot of room but might be useful in a pinch. I might forgo the blender for a hand blender. Definite yes: Knives – cutting boards – coffeemaker – soup/stock/casserole pot – micro plane graters – a strainer for pasta and such. Definite no: Food processor – just doesn’t get used that much as it is. Off topic, but I’m curious, Nina – Do you worry much about pilfering/ vandalism while set up in a campground? i.e. Do you leave your carpet and chairs and grill out at night, or bring them in? My sister’s brand new camper was damaged this summer when some idiot ran by and threw an empty Axe spray can into their fire pit during the 30 seconds when my bro-in-law was inside and not watching the fire. The can exploded and damaged the roof of their camper. Just wondering how vigilant one needs to be.

We haven’t come across much vandalism in our 8 years on the road. We did get our bikes stolen at a campground once (in San Diego), but that’s the only incident we’ve had. Since then we’ve locked them up and haven’t had a problem. We always leave our chairs out, but we do also lock the RV when we leave for sightseeing. Personally I feel most campers are honest and look out for each other. The bad seed are very few indeed.

Thanks for the response. So glad you enjoyed your time in our beautiful state of Maine! I hope, if you come back and we’re still here (just outside Augusta), you’ll let us host you for some driveway not-so-dry camping.

I know it’s a necro-post but I followed your wok link to this. We have bot a carbon steel and cast iron wok. But what caught my attention was your cast iron pan photo. We have a lot of old and new cast iron. I recently re-seasoned the older pieces that had become encrusted with burnt-on oil:

Given the Wagner’s logo style it’s pre-1920’s. It belonged to my wife’s grandmother. Here it is (top) after I burned off the old seasoning in a 700 degree plus grill and re-seasoned it and the other 2 that were in bad shape:

[…] Equipment Needed The key to a good mayonnaise emulsion is speed and the best thing for this is a food processor. You can certainly make mayonnaise the “old-fashioned” way with a hand whisk (and we’ve done that), but you’ll get more consistent results with the speed of a food processor. Our processor of choice is the this very basic, very powerful Cuisinart DLC-2009CHB 9-cup. It’s an absolute work-horse that we’ve used it for years, and it’s big enough to handle just about anything we need. We like it so much it’s one of our top 5 favorite kitchen items for RV cooking. […]

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